Epilogue #2
I’ve lost track of how long I’ve been hiding in here, but given the growing concern in Mack’s voice, I’m thinking it’s been a while.
My stomach knots, and I feel like I’ve swallowed a bowling ball. “I don’t have anything to wear to bed!”
There’s deafening silence on the other side of the door. Eventually, he says, “Erin,” in that stupid sexy tone of his. The one that says, honey-I-love-you-but-you’re-being-silly. My name is followed by another silent pause. “Just sleep in one of my T-shirts like you always do.”
“I can’t. It’s our honeymoon . I can’t come to bed wearing a man’s T-shirt.”
I hear a muffled sigh through the door. “You didn’t bring anything with you? A nightgown, maybe?”
“Yes, I brought something with me, but now I’ve got cold feet. I can’t wear it.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s lingerie , and it’s see-through! I mean, you can see everything !”
This time, I swear I hear a muffled chuckle. “Honey, I’ve already seen everything lots of times.” He sighs. “Honestly, it doesn’t matter what you wear to bed.”
“Of course it does! It’s our honeymoon . I should have thought this through. I should have realized —”
I hear a soft metal clicking noise, and then the bathroom door opens a few inches. He picked the lock! Mack pokes his head through the opening. His chest is bare, and it looks like he’s wearing only a pair of dark gray boxer-briefs which hug him like a glove, outlining every delectable inch of him.
When he sees me standing here in my underwear and bra, he smiles. “Erin, you look beautiful just as you are.” He pushes the bathroom door open and walks into the room. “You don’t need to wear some fancy—” His gaze lands on the barely-more-than-a-thong pair of panties on the vanity. “Oh, wow.”
“Beth pressured me into getting it.”
I’m distracted momentarily by the sight of his mostly-bare body. My gaze skims his body, down his firm chest, his ridged abdomen, and past the happy trail that disappears beneath the waistband of his boxers. The outline of his erection is clearly visible underneath his underwear.
His smile widens. “I think it’s pretty. The color matches your eyes.”
“I can’t wear it.”
“Why not? It’s—”
“I’ll look stupid in it.”
“No, you won’t.” His expression softens.
“Honey….” He opens his arms, and I walk into them for a much-needed hug.
He kisses the side of my head and then whispers, “Erin, you could never look stupid. Even if you were wearing a burlap sack, you would still be the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. ”
I pull back and stare into his eyes. “You’re putting it on a little bit thick there. I am not—”
He cups my face and meets my gaze with all sincerity. “Yes, you are. And you know what?”
“What?”
“I’d give anything to see you in this outfit.”
“Really?”
He nods. “Really. Please, wear it for me.”
I swallow hard, my mouth dry. “You’re not just saying that to be nice?”
He raises three fingers. “Scout’s honor.”
“Fine,” I say begrudgingly. “I’ll put it on, but if you laugh, I swear I’ll—”
He backs out of the room with his hands raised in mock surrender. “It’ll never happen. You have my word.” And then he closes the door behind him, leaving me alone in the bathroom with my sexy, see-through garments.
Okay, fine. I can do this.
Summoning every bit of courage I can muster, I slip off my plain white bra and underwear, and quickly, before I can change my mind, I pull on the barely there lace panties and the sheer lacy camisole top.
I don’t dare look at myself in the mirror, because if I do, I know I’ll chicken out.
And Mack deserves a wife who isn’t a chicken.
The rest of me is ready, so I open the bathroom door and peer out to spot Mack sitting on the side of the bed.
When I step out of the bathroom, he shoots to his feet.
And stares.
His dark eyes widen with something that looks like shock, and maybe a little bit of lust.
He swallows hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing violently. “Erin.” He holds out his hand. “You look stunning.”
If the heat I feel in my cheeks is anything to go by, I’m blushing furiously. I must be, because he smiles at me.
Mack pulls me close and wraps me in his arms. “You look so beautiful.” And then he cups my face in his big hands and leans in to give me the sweetest kiss. Tears spring to my eyes.
“Hey, no tears,” he says. “Tonight is a celebration.”
While I was in the bathroom for God knows how long, Mack got the room ready for us. The lights are turned down low. The comforter and sheets are pulled down invitingly. The drapes over the balcony doors are still open, giving us a view of the starry night sky over the lake.
Everything is perfect.
Mack sweeps me up into his arms and carries me to the bed, where he lays me down. “I meant what I said, Erin. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. And I’m the luckiest man in the world because you’re mine .” He leans down to kiss me. “And I’m yours .”
“You got yourself a high-maintenance wife,” I say, stating the obvious. He was kind enough not to mention that.
Mack’s expression grows serious. “No, you’re not. You’re perfect.” He crawls onto the bed, on his hands and knees as he looms over me.
I reach up to cradle his face in my hands. “My husband.” I sigh, loving the feel of those words on my lips.
“My wife.” He leans down to kiss my forehead, then each closed eyelid, the tip of my nose, and my lips. “I hope you’re not in a hurry tonight because I want to take my time and worship every inch of you.”
Mack isn’t kidding when he says every inch . He kisses his way down my throat to my collar bones. Then his mouth travels lower, to the tops of my breasts peeking above the lingerie. He really is taking his time because he doesn’t try to undress me—yet.
“This really is pretty,” he says as he runs a fingertip along the neckline of my top.
The feel of his finger lightly stroking my skin gives me tingles.
He brushes one cup back, exposing my left breast. After looking his fill, he draws my nipple into his warm, wet mouth and suckles.
Electricity courses through me, settling low in my core.
My belly quivers, and I can feel heat pooling between my legs.
He gives my right breast the same unhurried treatment, and then he kisses his way down my torso until he reaches the hemline of my top. He pushes it up, revealing my belly and uncovering my ridiculously skimpy panties.
“I wholeheartedly approve of these,” he murmurs as he runs his tongue along the waistband. He peers up at me and smiles when he sees I’m watching him.
I gasp when I feel his finger press against the narrow gusset of my underwear. “Are you wet for me?”
Swallowing with excited anticipation, I nod.
“Good.” His fingers untie the ribbons holding my camisole together.
The silky lace fabric falls away, baring my breasts and belly. I shiver, but not because I’m cold. But rather because Mack is eating me up with his eyes.
He presses his nose to my panties and breathes in, groaning loudly. Then he slips my panties down past my hips, down my legs, and tosses them aside.
“Don’t lose those,” I say. “I might want to wear this again.”
“Trust me, they’re not going anywhere.”
Mack opens my legs wide enough to make room for his broad shoulders and chest to fit between them. He glances up at me once, probably checking to make sure I’m still on board with this, and when it’s clear I am, he slides his shoulders beneath my thighs, raising and opening my legs even more.
When his tongue strokes my clit, I arch my back off the mattress, crying out in surprise. No matter how many times he does this, it always shocks me—in a good way.
The rest blurs together because my body is swamped with pleasure. My nerve endings are singing, my clit is throbbing. He uses his tongue and his fingers to touch and stroke and tease. Soon, I’m panting as I try to catch my breath. I clutch the sheet beneath me. “Mack!”
My orgasm takes me by surprise as electricity shoots through me. My limbs stiffen as pleasure swamps me. I can feel a deliciousness flowing from between my legs all the way up to my aching breasts.
When Mack shoots up to align our mouths for a deep, soul searching kiss, I taste myself on his lips. With one hand, he works his boxers down and off his legs, tossing them wherever he tossed my panties.
He reaches between us and touches me again, his fingers sliding carefully through my slick wetness. And then I feel the broad head of his erection nudging my opening.
“I love you, Erin,” he says, capturing my gaze as he presses inward. “Thank you for making me the happiest man alive.” And then he slowly sinks into me, an inch at a time, pausing to give my body time to accommodate him.
Once he’s in all the way, he hooks his elbows under my knees and raises my legs, opening me up as he begins to move. His eyes are still locked on mine, his expression taut and so focused.
The feel of him inside me is sheer perfection, and I feel like I’m floating. I reach up to run my hands along his shoulders and down his firm biceps, across his chest.
He rocks into me, slow and steady, making my body tingle all over again. Suddenly, he’s moving faster, thrusting hard and deep. His chest heaves as he tries to catch his breath. When he comes, his body tightens, his neck arching as he groans loudly.
I can feel him deep inside me, throbbing and pulsing as he releases liquid heat, filling me.
I lose track of time afterward. We lie in each other’s arms, our bodies cooling down. We’re in no hurry to move. No hurry to separate. When he does finally pull out, we make a quick trip to the bathroom to clean up. Then we return to bed and curl up together beneath the blankets.
Mack lies on his back, and I lie with my head resting on his shoulder. I trace patterns on his chest, smiling whenever he shivers at my touch.
“Mrs. Donovan.” His voice is low and a bit hoarse.
Smiling, I press a kiss to his bare chest. “Yes, Mr. Donovan?”
“We’ve come a long way, and it’s taken some time, but we made it. We’re here, embarking on the rest of our lives together. Thank you for trusting me enough to marry me. Thank you for—”
“Don’t say it, Mack!”
He chuckles softly. “How do you know what I’m going to say?”
“Of course I know.” He says it so often.
Thank you for forgiving me.
“There’s nothing to forgive. You saved me, and you gave me my life back. I could never wish for anything more.”
He rubs my bare back as I doze off to sleep, my head pillowed on his shoulder. There won’t be any bad dreams tonight, I can tell. I’m too happy and too relaxed. There’s no room for darkness. “Goodnight, husband.”
He kisses my forehead. “Goodnight, wife.”
* * *
Thank you for reading Mack and Erin’s long-awaited follow-up story!